Multi-tapping numpad

ABSTRACT

A mobile phone including a number keypad for entering the symbols 0-9, # and *, the keypad including at most five keys at least one of which corresponds to a list of at least two symbols, wherein the n th  symbol in the list corresponding to a key is accessed by tapping on the key n times, with cycling from the end of the list back to the beginning of the list. A portable media player with dual use as a cell phone is also described and claimed.

PRIORITY REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims benefit of assignee's provisional patentapplications U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/009,523, entitledMULTI-TAPPING NUMPAD, filed on Dec. 28, 2007 by inventor Uri Ron.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the present invention is keypads for mobile phones.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Mobile phones are becoming increasingly popular, and people generallycarry their phones with them at all times. As such, it is of advantageto reduce the sizes and weights of phones, in order to make them moreconvenient to carry.

One of the main limiting factors of miniaturization of phone is keypadsize. Conventional keypads include twelve keys, and have already beenreduced in size to the threshold where it is difficult for a person todial phone numbers quickly and accurately.

Ideally, by reducing the number of keys in a phone's keypad, the size ofthe phone may be reduced. However, with fewer than twelve keys there arenot enough keys to support the ten symbols 0-9, and the two symbols *and #, which are required for dialing.

Today, miniature phones have been integrated within watches. Cell phonewatches, such as the M500 Cellwatch™ manufactured and distributed by MyMobile Watch of Shenzhen City, China, and the W-100 Watch manufacturedby Hyundai Corporation of Seoul, Korea, use touch screens for dialing.Other cell phone watches use scrolling between digits to select them oneat a time for dialing.

These and other miniature phones use entry mechanisms that arecumbersome, or use pre-defined phone numbers for short code dialing. Itwould thus be of advantage to provide a miniature phone keypad with asimple intuitive mechanism for entering phone numbers.

SUMMARY OF THE DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the present invention provide a flexible keypad with at mostfive keys for use in dialing phone numbers on miniature phones. Theminiature phones may have physical dimensions on the order of 2.5 cm×5cm or smaller.

There is thus provided in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention a mobile phone including a number keypad for entering thesymbols 0-9, # and *, the keypad including at most five keys at leastone of which corresponds to a list of at least two symbols, wherein then^(th) symbol in the list corresponding to a key is accessed by tappingon the key n times, with cycling from the end of the list back to thebeginning of the list.

There is additionally provided in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention a mobile phone including a number keypad for enteringthe symbols 0-9, # and *, the keypad including at most five keys atleast one of which corresponds to a list of at least two symbols,wherein pressing and holding a key causes symbols in the listcorresponding to the key to be accessed sequentially in time, withcycling from the end of the list back to the beginning of the list.

There is moreover provided in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention a portable media player with dual use as a cell phone,including a keypad with a plurality of keys, at least one of which isused for dialing a phone number and corresponds to a list of at leasttwo symbols, wherein the n^(th) symbol in the list corresponding to akey is accessed by tapping on the key n times, with cycling from the endof the list back to the beginning of the list.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be more fully understood and appreciated fromthe following detailed description, taken in conjunction with thedrawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an illustration of miniature mobile phones with reducedkeypads, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2A is an illustration of a small mobile phone with a multi-tapkeypad with five keys for accessing the symbols 0-9, * and #, withsymbols corresponding to keys engraved on the keys, in accordance withan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2B is an illustration of a small mobile phone with a multi-tapkeypad with five keys for accessing the symbols 0-9, * and #, withsymbols corresponding to keys presented on a display, in accordance withan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is an illustration of a small mobile phone with a multi-tapkeypad used for composing SMS messages, in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention; and

FIG. 3B is an illustration of the small mobile phone of FIG. 3A used fordialing phone numbers, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the present invention relate to miniature mobile phones withreduced keypads, such as phone 100 and keypad 110, and phone 150 andkeypad 160 illustrated in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1, phones 100 and 150are on the order of 2.5 cm×5 cm, which is smaller than a standard sizedcredit card.

Reference is now made to FIG. 2A, which is an illustration of a smallmobile phone 200 with a multi-tap keypad with five keys for accessingthe symbols 0-9, * and #, with symbols corresponding to keys engraved onthe keys, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.Mobile phone 200 has a reduced keypad with four keys 210 surrounding acenter key 220, similar to the layout of the keypad 110 in FIG. 1. Eachof the four keys 210 has a list of three symbols printed on the keys.The list of symbols for a key represents the symbols that that key canenter. Key 220 is a select or general function key.

In one embodiment of the present invention, tapping a key 210 n timesaccesses the n^(th) symbol in the list printed on the key. Additionaltaps on a key 210 beyond three taps, cycle back around to the beginningof the list. The rightmost key 210, for example, cycles through4-5-6-4-5-6-4-etc. when tapped successively. Tapping on this key onceaccesses 4, tapping twice accesses 5, tapping three time accesses 6,tapping four times accesses 4, tapping five times accesses 5, etc.Tapping on a different key, or stopping the tapping for a pre-designatedperiod of time, causes the currently accessed symbol to be entered.

In another embodiment of the present invention, pressing and holding akey 210 causes symbols to be accessed in time in a sequential and cyclicorder, from the list of symbols printed on the key. Releasing the keycauses a currently accessed symbol to be entered.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, both tapping andpressing are enabled, and symbols can be accessed by either tapping oneor more times on a key, or by pressing and holding the key. TABLE Isummarizes these two modes of symbol access and entry.

TABLE I Modes for entering symbols from a list of symbols correspondingto a key Symbol Access Symbol Entry Multi-tap mode Tapping on the keyone Stopping to tap, or or more times tapping on a different key Pressand hold mode Pressing and holding the Releasing the key key

The four keys 210 span twelve symbols, resulting in a ratio of 3 symbolsper key. Conventional telephone keypads span the 26 alphabeticalcharacters using eight keys, resulting in a ratio of 3.25 symbols perkey. As such, the keypad of mobile phone 200 is more efficient for dataentry than conventional keypads are.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that thecorrespondence between symbols and keys is arbitrary for the presentinvention. The lists of symbols illustrated in FIG. 2A are 1-2-3, 4-5-6,7-8-9 and 0-*-#, but other lists may be implemented instead. Forexample, 0-1-2, 3-4-5, 6-7-8 and 9-*-#. In addition, the presentinvention may be implemented with fewer keys than shown in FIG. 2A. Withthree keys, for example, the symbols may be distributed into lists as1-2-3-4, 5-6-7-8 and 9-0-*-#, with 4 symbols per key.

Reference is now made to FIG. 2B, which is an illustration of a mobilephone 250 with a multi-tap keypad with five keys for accessing thesymbols 0-9, * and #, with symbols corresponding to keys presented on adisplay, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.Mobile phone 250 has a reduced keypad with four keys 260 surrounding acenter key 270, and has a display 280. Each of the four keys 260corresponds to a list of three symbols. A visual snapshot of the fourkeys 260 and their corresponding lists of symbols are rendered indisplay 280. Symbols from the list corresponding to a key 260 areentered for dialing by either tapping on the key one or more times, orby pressing and holding the key, as described hereinabove with referenceto FIG. 2A.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the presentinvention may be embodied in a mobile phone without a display screen.For such an embodiment, the symbols a user has entered can be presentedto him by an audio read-out, or by a small display field on the mobilephone. Alternatively, there may not be a presentation of symbolsentered, relying instead on the user's memory. An embodiment without adisplay screen enables the size of the mobile phone to be significantlyreduced.

In this regard, an advantage of the present invention is theintuitiveness of the keys and their symbol lists, making it easy forusers to memorize locations of keys and their corresponding lists. Assuch, users can dial without looking at the keys or at the displayscreen. Such advantage is particularly useful in dark settings withoutbackground light, and where the keys are not backlit.

In accordance with the present invention, physical engravings andphysical features are added to the keys, as an assist for dialingwithout looking at the keys.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 3A and 3B, which are illustration of asmall mobile phone with a multi-tap keypad, in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3A shows use of the smallmobile phone for composing SMS messages, and FIG. 3B shows use of thesmall mobile phone for dialing phone numbers. When the keypad is usedfor composing SMS messages, the display presents the 26 message-relatedsymbols, a-z, according to four keys of the keypad, corresponding to 6.5symbols per key. When the keypad is used for dialing, the displaypresents 12 dialing-related symbols according to four keys of thekeypad. By presenting different lists of symbols on the display,multiple use is made of the same reduced keypad.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate from FIG. 1 that the presentinvention supports an unlimited variety of keypad designs, withcustomized looks for different vendors.

Moreover, the present invention enables dual use of keypads designed forelectronics devices other than phones, for use with phones as well.Keypads 110 and 160 shown in FIG. 1 were originally designed forportable media players. Using the present invention, the portable mediaplayers may be enhanced with phone functionality and their keypads maybe used both for playing media and for dialing phone calls.

In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described withreference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof. It will, however,be evident that various modifications and changes may be made to thespecific exemplary embodiments without departing from the broader spiritand scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in anillustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

1-12. (canceled)
 13. An electronic data processor comprising: a key forentering a symbol from among a plurality of symbols into an electronicdata processor for processing by the electronic data processor, each ofthe plurality of symbols having a distinct sound associated therewith;an audio processor for generating sound; and circuitry coupled with saidkey and said audio processor that causes said audio processor tosequentially generate the sound associated with each of the plurality ofsymbols in response to successive tapping of the key.
 14. The electronicdata processor of claim 13 wherein said circuitry causes a symbol to beentered into the electronic device in response to stopping thesuccessive tapping of said key when said audio processor generates thesound associated with that symbol.
 15. The electronic data processor ofclaim 13 wherein said circuitry causes said audio processor to cycleback to the beginning of the sequence in response to further successivetapping of said key after said audio processor has generated the soundassociated with the last symbol in the sequence.
 16. The electronic dataprocessor of claim 13 wherein the plurality of symbols is shown on topof said key.
 17. The electronic data processor of claim 13 wherein saidcircuitry causes the plurality of symbols that may be entered by saidkey to change to a different plurality of symbols, each of the differentplurality of symbols also having a distinct sound associated therewith.18. An electronic data processor comprising: a key for entering a symbolfrom among a plurality of symbols into an electronic data processor forprocessing by the electronic data processor, each symbol having adistinct sound associated therewith; an audio processor for generatingsound; and circuitry coupled with said key and said audio processor thatcauses said audio processor to sequentially generate the soundassociated with each symbol in response to prolonged depressing of thekey.
 19. The electronic data processor of claim 18 wherein saidcircuitry causes a symbol to be entered into the electronic device inresponse to releasing the prolonged depressing of the key when saidaudio processor generates the sound associated with that symbol.
 20. Theelectronic data processor of claim 18 wherein said circuitry causes saidaudio processor to cycle back to the beginning of the sequence inresponse to further prolonged depressing of said key after said audioprocessor has generated the sound associated with the last symbol in thesequence.
 21. The electronic data processor of claim 18 wherein theplurality of symbols is shown on top of said key.
 22. The electronicdata processor of claim 18 wherein said circuitry causes the pluralityof symbols that may be entered by said key to change to a differentplurality of symbols, each of the different plurality of symbols alsohaving a distinct sound associated therewith.
 23. An electronic dataprocessor comprising: a key for entering a symbol from among a pluralityof symbols into an electronic data processor for processing by theelectronic data processor; a display for displaying symbols; andcircuitry coupled with said key and said display that causes theplurality of symbols to be displayed sequentially on said display inresponse to successive tapping of the key, and also causes the pluralityof symbols to be displayed sequentially on said display in response toprolonged depressing of the key.
 24. The electronic data processor ofclaim 23 wherein said circuitry causes a symbol to be entered into theelectronic device in response to stopping the successive tapping of saidkey when that symbol is being displayed on said display.
 25. Theelectronic data processor of claim 23 wherein said circuitry causes asymbol to be entered into the electronic device in response to releasingthe prolonged holding of said key when that symbol is being displayed onsaid display.
 26. The electronic data processor of claim 23 wherein saidcircuitry causes display of the symbols on said display to cycle back tothe beginning of the sequence in response to further successive tappingof said key after the last symbol in the sequence has been displayed onsaid display.
 27. The electronic data processor of claim 23 wherein saidcircuitry causes display of the symbols on said display to cycle back tothe beginning of the sequence in response to further prolongeddepressing of said key after the last symbol in the sequence has beendisplayed on said display.
 28. The electronic data processor of claim 23wherein the plurality of symbols is shown on top of said key.
 29. Theelectronic data processor of claim 23 wherein said circuitry causes theplurality of symbols that may be entered by said key to change to adifferent plurality of symbols.